How can we compare the colonizing patterns and colonial societies of Period 2, and how do historians reason about comparison?
Topic 2.8 Comparison in Period 2: applying the historical reasoning skill of comparison to the differing European colonizing patterns and the distinct British colonial regions.
A focused answer to AP US History Topic 2.8, the comparison reasoning skill applied to Period 2: comparing the colonizing models of Spain, France, the Dutch, and Britain, and the distinct British colonial regions, and how to structure a comparison LEQ or DBQ.
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What this topic is asking
Topic 2.8 is a reasoning-skill topic. The College Board is not adding new content; it is asking you to apply the historical reasoning skill of comparison to Period 2. You should be able to compare the colonizing models of the European powers and the distinct British colonial regions, identifying similarities and differences and, crucially, explaining the reasons for them.
What comparison means on the AP exam
The exam tests three reasoning skills: causation (anchored in Topic 1.7), comparison (anchored here), and continuity and change over time.
Two ready-made comparisons
Period 2 hands you two comparisons you can deploy on the exam.
Comparing the colonizing powers
| Power | Main goal | Population | Native relations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spain | Bullion, labor, conversion | Moderate | Conquest, missions, encomienda |
| France | Fur trade | Small | Trade alliances |
| Dutch | Commerce, fur trade | Small | Trade-focused |
| Britain | Permanent settlement, land | Large | Conflict over land |
The reason for the differences is differing imperial goals: trade empires (France, Dutch) needed Native partners, while the settlement empire (Britain) needed Native land.
Comparing the British regions
| Region | Economy | Labor | Founding motive |
|---|---|---|---|
| New England | Farms, fishing, trade | Family labor | Religion (Puritan) |
| Middle | Grain (breadbasket) | Mixed, some enslaved | Tolerance, commerce |
| Chesapeake | Tobacco | Servants then enslaved | Profit |
| South | Rice, indigo | Heavily enslaved | Profit |
The reasons are environment (climate and soil) and founding motive.
Reasoning well: explain the why
Try this
Q1. Name the three historical reasoning skills tested on the AP exam. [Recall]
- Cue. Causation, comparison, and continuity and change over time.
Q2. Explain why New England and the Southern colonies developed such different economies. [Short explanation]
- Cue. New England's cold climate, poor soil, and Puritan founding produced family farms and trade, while the South's hot climate and profit motive produced cash-crop plantations worked by enslaved labor.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of College Board exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
AP 2018 (style)6 marksCompare the development of two distinct British colonial regions in the period 1607 to 1754, evaluating the extent of their differences.Show worked answer →
A Long Essay Question (LEQ), scored on the 6-point comparison rubric.
Thesis (1): "New England and the Southern colonies differed sharply in economy, labor, and society because of climate and founding motive, though both shared self-government and the mercantile system."
Contextualization (1): the British model of large permanent settlement within the Atlantic world.
Evidence (2): New England's family farms, fishing, and Puritan towns; the South's plantations, cash crops, and enslaved majority.
Comparison analysis (2): explicitly compare similarities and differences and explain WHY they differed (environment and motive), then add complexity by noting shared institutions, so the regions were both distinct and connected.
The reasoning skill tested is comparison: similarities and differences, and reasons for them.
AP 2021 (style)3 marksBriefly describe ONE similarity between the French and Spanish colonizing models. Briefly describe ONE difference. Briefly explain ONE reason for the difference.Show worked answer →
A Short Answer Question (SAQ) testing comparison, 3 points.
A. Similarity: both France and Spain kept relatively small settler populations and sought to convert and trade with or use Native peoples rather than displace them on a mass scale.
B. Difference: Spain relied on conquest and coerced Native labor through the encomienda, while France relied on voluntary trade alliances for furs.
C. Reason: differing imperial goals (Spain sought bullion and labor; France sought furs) shaped the relationship each built with Native peoples.
The key is to keep similarity, difference, and reason cleanly separated, which is what comparison demands.
Related dot points
- Topic 2.1 Contextualizing Period 2: the imperial competition, differing colonial goals, and Atlantic context that framed the founding of European colonies in North America.
Sets the scene for AP US History Period 2, covering the imperial competition between Spain, France, the Dutch, and Britain, their differing economic and religious goals for colonization, and how to write contextualization for a DBQ or LEQ on colonial America.
- Topic 2.2 European Colonization: the differing colonizing patterns, economic goals, and Native relations of the Spanish, French, Dutch, and British empires in North America.
A focused answer to AP US History Topic 2.2, comparing how the Spanish, French, Dutch, and British colonized North America, their differing imperial goals and labor systems, and how those goals shaped settlement patterns and relations with Native peoples.
- Topic 2.3 The Regions of British Colonies: how the New England, Middle, Chesapeake, and Southern colonies developed distinct economies, societies, and labor systems.
A focused answer to AP US History Topic 2.3, comparing the New England, Middle, Chesapeake, and Southern colonial regions, their economies, societies, religions, and labor systems, and the environmental and motivational reasons they diverged.
- Topic 2.6 Slavery in the British Colonies: the shift from indentured servitude to racial chattel slavery, the legal codification of slavery, regional differences, and enslaved resistance.
A focused answer to AP US History Topic 2.6, explaining the shift from indentured servitude to hereditary racial chattel slavery, the slave codes that legalized it, regional differences in enslaved labor, and the many forms of enslaved resistance and culture.
- Topic 2.7 Colonial Society and Culture: the development of self-government, the Enlightenment and the Great Awakening, and an emerging Anglo-American identity in the British colonies.
A focused answer to AP US History Topic 2.7, covering the growth of representative self-government, the Enlightenment and the First Great Awakening, the religious and intellectual life of the colonies, and the emergence of a distinct Anglo-American colonial identity by 1754.
Sources & how we know this
- AP United States History Course and Exam Description — College Board (2020)